St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1887-01-22


fathoms for few minutes at . time on
some quick job. but STAYING down at
that depth and working is quite n diff
ferent matter. Some of our divers
stayed down forty five anil even sixty
minutes, but the usual time was from
thirty to forty minutes. As rule. we
did not allow them to stay down rs long
rs they wished to after they had become
accustomed to the work. for there was
always the danger that il man was
too long subjected to sixty or sixty-two
pounds to the square inch. that had to
be maintained ut that depth, it might
break him all up for several days. How
break him up?' Well. it seemed to
paralyze them. Sometimes . man
would come up with no control ut all
of an arm or leg. 1t would hang as
il dead. In few days it would come
all right. but the sensation, while IT
lasted, must have been rather dis
quietiny. Then. when there was not
actual paralysis of one or more limbs
there were apt to be sharp pains ani
aches Some of the men who started
in diving there could not stand the
work. and had to give it up; but those
who stuck to it seemed to grow accus-
toned to it and did not complain
at all after q little while But they
were an exceptionally good lot Of
men. and we took the best posi-
BILE care of them. When . man
would come up and his hemlet and
armor were taken of. he would be
thoroughly rubbed all over. walked up
and down the deck for little bit. get
q good drink of brandy. and then he
Law down to sleep for an hour. when he
would he quite fresh and reSdy to 20
down again. Two would 60 down
while one was resting.
1--WE had altogether fourteen divers
when we started, but half q dozen of
them could not stand the work. and
our average force of divers was eight
They worked in two separate and en-
tirely distinct expeditions. each Oi
which had a schooner to operate from.
and there was also steamer, to take
care Of and tend them. When the
weather was SO violent that it was i'm
possible to work on the wreck, the
steamer would take the schooners into
Fire Islanu Inlet to wait for more pro-
pitious skies. But the distance was SO
great. involving so much loss of time
in going to and fro, that We only left
our ground when the necessity was
most imperative. Often we took in
cargo when the schooners were pitch
ing and rolling with such violence in
the angry waves that they were taking
water over their rails on alternate sides
at every roll. Perhaps we even took
| some desperate chances, but we had to
do SO or suffer inierminablc delays. As
it was. VIC have had to lose as much Is
three weeks at stretch waiting tor
change in the weather. e
| Another danger We lad to en-
counter, that was not 4 little ora, was
that of being run down by STEAMERS in
the fOgs that were quite frequent. We
were right in their track. and had
several very narrow escapes.
| .Sharks?' q, yc.. We saw sharks
there. bu: they did not make any
trouble. OF course it makes u man
feel a little uncomfortable away down
| in the sea, 10 have great shadow
gliding over him and know that it is
made b. a huge. raycnous fish, that
could bite him in two if It dared and
considered it worth while. Eut the
sharks are more afraid of the diver:
than the divers are of the sharks. A
real diver ism afraid of 4 shark. Only
the divers that dive about gin mill,
have the terrible shark experiences
Aside from sharks. the water about the
Oregon wreck fairly swa!med with fish
There were myrials Of them; good big
ones and excellent eating, too, as W.
found, but l don't remember thciI
names.
.Accilents:' No. With expert
enced skill, conscientious care, a1C
intelligence in conducting diving opera
tons they need not be attended with
anv more danger of accident-or moi
much more at least-than any heavy
work on land. Our powerful all
pumps. driven by steam. forced the all
into tanks. whence it was admitted te
the divers hose by a nicely regulated
system of gauges and cocks that con.
trolled the pressure to q nicely. and
that was all under the care of expert.
enced and very careful men, in whom
the Divers below had tho utmost conf
dence. 1t is a great help to \ diver tO
have his mind clear of all anxiety about
what is going on up ut the pumps. He
knows then that all he has to look Out
for is TO take care that his hose and
life line do not get entsngled and
that he does not himself get jainmed
among the cargo. Very often we had
TO have one man on deck to attend ia
the hose and life line of another al
work i'm the hold five fathoms below,
to see that the strong current did not
sweep them away to where they would
be entanglcd and perhaps injured.
There were hand air pumps rs well as
the steam ones. connected up and ready
for action at any moment if any thing
should happen. and the pressure was
always regulated according to the depth
ut which the divers were, accurate
knowledge of their movements being
transmitted by signals on the life line.
| No signals except for air are ever sent
by the hose.
| eve saved an immense amount Oi
stuff. OF course. we brought up much
that was entirely valueess after the
soaking it had received-a lot of arsiii-
cisl flowers, for instance, the condition
of which you may imagine. The divers
could not tell when thcy got hold OF
box what was in il. and cons ,quently
selection Of cargo was quite impossible.
Some of the changes that had been
worked by the water were surprising.
Boxes containing dry goods that had
been iron hooped at the ends were 50
bulged out by the swelling of the satur.
ated stuffs inside that they were round
ss hOgShea!s. One part of the cargo
| that ~. cnnid aliSnasc Of low a halON